Love and Happiness Found
by TRikiD
Summary: Kate and Humphrey's pups had all grown into fine young adults, and they begin to learn more amazing things that they never thought they would experience...but with great progression can also come horrible ends. The pack starts to face tragic losses, and it even puts their alliances on the line. What will this mean for Stinky, Claudette and Runt? And what lessons will they learn?
1. Chapter 1

Love and Happiness Found

Chapter 1 - Extended Hunting Trip

Stinky, Claudette and Runt had finally hit their growth spurts, and it wasn't long before the three of them went from little pups to fine adults; Stinky and Claudette both grew into strong alphas, and Runt became a clever, tree-climbing omega.

But even with great progress can come horrible ends; shortly after the three pups became adults, Kate, Lilly, Humphrey and Garth's parents had unfortunately died, but they kicked the bucket in the best way possible: old age. All the wolves knew that they were in a better place now, but with them gone, it was Kate and Humphrey's turn to take full responsibility of leading the pack.

But even for Kate and Humphrey, it was a little too much, so when need be, Lilly and Garth immediately took charge to help since Stinky wasn't a fully-fledged leader yet. And Stinky was still learning a lot about what it means to be a true leader from his mother.

Stinky and Kate would spend much of their time together in the woods, where they hunted caribou, and Kate taught many more important requirements an alpha wolf needs; for example, great hunting experience, knowing what to be weary of in case of predators, outstanding athletic moves, etc. And Kate and Stinky really enjoyed their time together too; Stinky honestly couldn't have asked for a better mother…but it was not to last.

The pack was starting to run low on food again, so it was time for the best alphas to go out on a hunting trip again, but the caribou were farther from home than usual, and that meant it would be a long hunting trip for the alphas, including Kate and Garth; though, they said their goodbyes to their loved ones and friends before they left.

Humphrey, his matured children, Lilly and Marcel and Paddy were all gathered outside the den, the one Winston passed down to Kate and Humphrey before he died, as they all said goodbye to Kate and Garth.

"So, you promise to bring back the biggest caribou for Papa?" Humphrey asked his mate with a smirk.

"Yes, I promise. Only the best for my mate," Kate replied in a chuckle, and she and Humphrey rubbed noses.

"Um, ew," Claudette sneered as she and her brothers were all disgusted with their parents' public affection, but when she looked away, she couldn't help but gasp in delight when she saw her big and hunky Fleet.

Yes, it wasn't too long ago that Fleet and Claudette finally confessed their feelings for each other, and they had been quite the little couple ever since. Just the sight of seeing Fleet going off on a hunt, let alone at all, made Claudette's heart flutter, and she quickly snuck away from everyone to go give her, hopefully, future mate a goodbye nuzzle.

But Claudette wasn't as sneaky as she thought, for Marcel and Paddy was able to soon spot her wondering off to her lover, and the birds alerted her parents.

"Ook-lay at your aughter-day," Marcel began while tapping Kate and Humphrey's shoulders and interrupted their nuzzling.

"Yes, I say—that she's growing up," Paddy added with a grin, and just as he said that, they watched Claudette and Fleet have an inaudible conversation, and then they rubbed noses with compassion.

"Not my little girl," Humphrey sighed sadly.

"Humphrey, she and Fleet have been together for months now. Why are you all of the sudden complaining about your daughter falling in love?" Kate asked with a chuckle, "besides, I think it's sweet…but it's also kind of sad that she can't go with Fleet on the trip."

"Now that I think about it, I'm glad she's not a fully-fledged alpha and can't go on the hunting trip," Humphrey pointed out under his breath.

"Humphrey!" Kate snapped.

"What?" Humphrey asked as his mate glared at him, "look Kate, I'm glad that Claudette's happy, but…"

"But…" Kate, Marcel and Paddy all urged.

"But I'm just not sure if I'm ready to let her go."

"How do you think my dad felt when I became your mate, Humphrey?" Kate asked softly, and then she gently nuzzled her head under his, "he loved me and wanted to protect me with all his heart, just like you, but that's just what dads do, they worry too much about their daughters. But here I am; he realized that if I was happy—and I am—he could be happy too. You're a great mate and father, Humphrey, and I love you for that."

"I love you too, Kate," Humphrey stated softly while nuzzling back.

Meanwhile, Garth and Lilly were saying their goodbyes…but it was a little difficult for them.

"You sure you're going to be ok out there?" Lilly asked sheepishly.

"Of course I am; there's no reason to worry," Garth replied sincerely while nuzzling his head against Lilly's, but she wasn't returning the nuzzle, and that confused her mate.

"You ok, Lilly?"

"I…I…no, I'm not."

"What's wrong?" Garth asked with worry as he looked right into his mate's beautiful violet eyes.

"I just…always keep seeing how happy Kate and Humphrey are together, and…it makes me wonder…why we're not like that."

"What? Are you saying you're not happy with me?"

"No, of course I am!" Lilly quickly protested, "I love you very much, Garth…but…"

"But…" her mate pressed on.

"I want to show you that I love you even more."

"W-what you do you mean?"

…

"I want to have pups with you, Garth," Lilly replied softly, and she stared back into her mate's eyes with seriousness.

"Y…y-you're serious?" Garth asked with shock.

"Oh, I-I understand if you don't want to start a family with me! I'm so sorry I asked!" Lilly stuttered with embarrassment while shrinking down into a ball, "I-I just thought you'd be happy."

"No, I'm not happy," Garth stated firmly, and Lilly thought she was going to cry…but that's when Garth smiled brightly.

"I'm thrilled!"

Lilly felt her heart lift when Garth said that, and they both immediately nuzzled again with more compassion.

"I've always wanted to start a family with you Lilly, but I was waiting for the right moment," Garth added gently.

"So…does that mean we can get started on that family when you get back?" Lilly asked in a slight seductive voice, and Garth was taken by surprise a little, as he pulled his head back and nervously chuckled. But he soon took a deep breath in, and smiled sweetly at his mate.

"Yes, we can. I love you, Lilly."

"I love you too, Garth."

…

"UGH, HOW MUCH MUSH DO WE NEED?!"

Everyone was startled when Runt suddenly shouted out in disgust at all the mushy love he and his brother had to witness.

"C'mon, Stinky, let's go somewhere WITHOUT any lovey-dovey wolves," Runt growled, and his brother soon followed him.

"Can you believe them? They seriously need ta get a cave," Runt started dryly.

"I don't know, Runt; we're almost near that age too," Stinky protested.

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that we'll soon probably understand the one thing many adults go through."

"And what's that?"

"Love."

"Ew, not you too, Stinky!" Runt sneered, and then he suddenly ran off without waiting for Stinky.

"Runt, wait!" Stinky called out for his little brother, but he never stopped, and he could catch up with him any day, but if there's anything Kate taught him, it's the maturity of an alpha, and that meant giving space to those who needed it, and Runt seemed like he definitely needed it.

"Hmmm…maybe one day he'll understand," Stinky sighed, but he knew he couldn't completely blame Runt since he would never know the responsibilities of an alpha. That, and Stinky also remembered that he would have to choose a mate to help him lead the pack himself…and he was NOT ready for that; which is why he wants to understand how his parents make it look so easy sooner than later.

And soon, it was time for the alpha team to leave, and the omegas and lesser alphas all wished them luck, but Runt was never there to say goodbye to his mom or uncle, not that it would have made a difference; they are going to come back anyway, so what's the point?

And as always, whenever Runt was mad or depressed, he would climb the tallest pine tree he could find to blow off steam with the sweet smell of pine and the gentle sway of the treetops in the breeze; that always seemed to work whenever he was down.

But as he lay comfortably up in the tree, his eyes blinked open when he swore he heard a twig snap; he then leaned over to look down and fine none other than Lilly pacing back and forth by the trunk of the tree he was in, and knowing his aunt, she was usually pretty low on self esteem, so he decided he would help her.

Runt carefully started to make his way down the tree by every branch, but it wasn't until he accidentally knocked a pine cone from its place, and it hit Lilly on the head, making her look up in confusion.

"Hey, Aunt Lilly!" Runt called with a smile.

"Oh…h-h, Runt," Lilly said with worry, and when her nephew landed in front of her, he was confused to see a scared look in her eyes.

"You ok, Aunt Lilly?" Runt asked with concern.

"Y-yeah, no, I'm fine, Runt, I-I just…i-it's grown up stuff, y-you wouldn't understand," Lilly protested while shaking her head.

"Why not?"

"Because it doesn't concern you. Ok? This is just between Garth and I."

"Well…ok, I guess…sorry I couldn't help," Runt sighed and started to walk off.

"No, it's not your fault, Runt," Lilly quickly added, making her nephew stop in his tracks, and she sighed while sulking her head.

"I'm out here because I'm scared, and I'm scared because…Garth and I are going to have pups."

…

"Really? Wow, that's actually pretty cool! Congrats, Aunt Lilly!" Runt cheered, and Lilly smiled.

"Do you know when the pups will be here?"

"Oh, well, um…we haven't exactly, um…ahem…'done the deed' just yet," Lilly replied with embarrassment and cleared her throat, "we're going to wait until he gets back from the hunting trip."

"Oh…well…again, congrats. And might I suggest a name for one of your sons? How does Runt sound?" Runt joked, and Lilly giggled.

"I'll think about it, and thank you for listening, Runt; you're the sweetest nephew ever."

* * *

Later that night, after Runt returned to the den, and he had ate what little meat food they had left for dinner and had gone to sleep…one certain wolf couldn't bring herself to sleep.

Claudette had been pacing outside the den for about an hour now, as a lingering feeling of dread kept her awake, and she kept staring at the full moon in hopes that it would calm her down…but it didn't.

And Claudette wouldn't be alone for long.

"What's got your tail in a bunch?"

Claudette nearly jumped when she heard her father's voice, and it startled her since she never expected him to wake up, or for anyone to wake up, for that matter.

"N-nothing…" Claudette lied, and her father could see right through her, as he stared at her with a cocked eyebrow.

"Ok, ok…I feel like something bad is going to happen to the alphas on their hunt."

"Ow is it that you can't spend too much time away fwom youw wittwe Fweet?" Humphrey mocked in baby talk.

"Dad, stop!" Claudette growled, "why does it matter to you so much that Fleet and I are together, anyway?"

"Because you're my daughter, and it's my job as a dad to be over protective."

"Well, then I hope you get fired."

"Oh, c'mon, Claudette," Humphrey began while sitting close to his daughter, "look, I'm sorry, but just know that I really do care about you, and…as long as you're happy…I guess I'm happy too."

"Really? So, you'll stop bugging me about Fleet?" Claudette asked with excitement.

"I'll try my best," Humphrey chuckled, but he then remembered something, "so, you're out here, in the middle of the night…because you think something bad is gonna happen to the alphas?"

"Yeah, I just…I don't know what it is, but I can't sleep," Claudette replied with worry, "don't you feel it too?"

"No, I don't know what you're feelin', Pup," Humphrey joked while rubbing Claudette's mane with a paw and ruffling it, but then he turned and headed back into the den, "c'mon, let's get back ta bed; you keep stayin' up this late, you'll never be able to keep up with your alpha duties."

But as relieved as she felt after a heart-felt talk with her father, and as tired as she finally realized she was, Claudette STILL couldn't shake that feeling of dread that something bad was going to happen to the alphas on their trip…she wouldn't know what to do if she ever lost her beloved Fleet.

* * *

 **First of all, yes, I ship Fleet and Claudette AND Humphrey and Lilly, so for those who ship them too...I have found my family. And second, ya might wanna grab some tissues and prepare for some VERY likely sad parts in future chapters.**

 **Until the next chapter, I'm TRikiD, bye-bye!**


	2. Chapter 2 - Requiem for the Alphas

Chapter 2 – Requiem for the Alphas

The alphas have been out on a search for caribou for nearly three weeks now, and they were starting to have doubts if they were going to find any food before the harsh cold of winter sets in.

But Kate and Garth were leading the hunt, and they soon lead the other alphas to the Rockies, the only place they haven't looked yet, and as the sun was setting and the skies were beginning to fill with thick clouds, their hopes for caribou were high. And they luckily found a small group of five caribou grabbing a drink of water from the lake, and they knew that this would be enough for the pack for a while, so they can't fail.

"Alright. Candu, you take some of the alphas, and ambush the caribou from the right; Hutch, you take the rest of the alphas; Garth and I will come in from the middle, and we'll have them completely cornered," Kate demanded in a hushed tone, as they all hid in the bushes, and Candu and Hutch followed Kate's demands and lead their assigned wolves away…but Fleet was confused.

"W-what about me? W-what do I do?"

"Fleet, you scout the area and check for any oncoming predators; we're counting on you, so keep your eyes peeled," Kate replied firmly.

"Alright," Fleet sighed in disappointment since he wanted to do much more for the hunt, but he knew not to disobey a professional alpha like Kate, so he brushed it off and reluctantly went off in a different direction to watch for predators.

"Are you just being hard on him because he's hitting on your daughter?" Garth asked with a cocked eyebrow.

"Why would I be mad at him at all? He makes Claudette happy, and that makes me happy; plus, I don't want my daughter to be sad if her possible future mate and my possible future son-in-law doesn't return home safely, so I'm going to keep him away from the danger as best I can," Kate explained quietly, "now, be quiet and focus on taking out those caribou."

Kate and Garth waited in the bushes to wait for any signs of the other alphas closing in on the caribou, and it wasn't long before they saw Candu and Hutch's teams slowly sneaking through the tall grass without being noticed by the caribou, which is good. Humphrey and Lilly's mates looked at each other with determined faces and nodded before starting to carefully creep themselves.

Meanwhile, Fleet was up on a rock ledge, overlooking the area, and he could see the alphas closing in on the caribou, but the longer he stared, the angrier he became.

"'Go and watch for any predators, Fleet'…puh…if ya doubt me that much, then why don't'cha just send me back home?" Fleet growled while mocking Kate, and he paced back in forth on the rock ledge in frustration. But as he kept moving, he started knocking smaller rocks and pebbles off the edge.

The pebbles had fallen down in front of a cave entrance, but the entrance was at a slant, so the debris fell down into the cave depths…and they awoke whoever was slumbering inside, as the creature awoke with a growl.

But Kate, Garth and the other alphas were too busy sneaking up on the caribou to care about Fleet, and they were all so close to coming in for the kill…but just when they were about to pounce, the angry roar of a cougar rang through the air; the caribou all immediately became spooked, and they suddenly scattered while actually trampling a few unfortunate alphas.

"Oh, no…" Kate whimpered, "RUN!"

But just when the other few mobile alphas were about to turn and run, more cougar growls and roars, and it started to rain within a flash of lightning and crack of thunder. And to make matters worse, Kate's cry for help called in numerous cougars…and they all looked REALLY aggressive and hungry.

Kate, Garth and some of the other alphas started to scatter, but two of the cougars come in and pounced on some of the trampled alphas, and their screams of terror and pain soon filled the air; the other alphas couldn't help because they were no match for the cougars.

"FLEET! FLEEEET!" Garth called out since Fleet was frozen atop the rock ledge ever since he saw the multiple cougars come out, but as Garth's vision became blurred by the now fierce-pouring rain, a cougar jumped out from his blind spot…and that was the end of Garth.

But Kate seemed to be the only other wolf that was still able to dodge most of the cougars, and she was sprinting up the mountain to scold Fleet for not watching for predators like he was supposed to, but then she saw a cougar sneaking up on the frozen Fleet.

"FLEET, LOOK OUT!"

Kate's call suddenly able to snap Fleet from his trance, but by the time he finally noticed the large cat, the cougar suddenly pounced…but then Kate stepped in between them.

* * *

Claudette suddenly woke with a scream, and she ended up rapidly breathing, but as she looked around, she found that she was still in her father's den with her dad and brothers, as the storm outside was still pretty bad, and that it was all just a nightmare…but it all felt so real…it really felt like Garth, Kate, Fleet and the rest of the hunting team were all killed by cougars…Claudette was scared to death and so confused as to if her nightmare was actually real.

But Claudette's little freak out had also woke Humphrey and her brothers, but they all seemed groggy and careless since Claudette woke them up so early.

"Ugh…why did you wake us up, Claude?" Runt groaned while plopping his head back down and closing his eyes without a care.

"Give her a break, Runt; she just woke up from a nightmare. Wouldn't you want support if you had a terrible dream too?" Stinky asked firmly to stand up for his sister.

"I-I'm not even sure if it WAS a dream…it felt way too real…like a warning," Claudette added in a whimper while placing her head back down and tried to hide it under her front paws.

"Would you like to tell us what happened?" Humphrey asked softly, and sat next to his daughter while putting a reassuring paw on her back.

It took Claudette a minute to think, but she soon sat up and took a deep breath in and closed her eyes.

"I had a nightmare where…the alphas were about to take down some caribou on their hunt, but the…things took a turn for the worse…there was a cougar attack."

Humphrey, Stinky and Runt were actually taken back by Claudette's nightmare, but they immediately denied it being a sign at all.

"I-It was just a dream, Claudette; it's not real and it never will be," Runt reassured, but he still felt a little uneasy.

"Runt's right; it'll all gonna be ok, so just go back to sleep," Humphrey added gently.

"Wait!" Stinky suddenly shouted, and he raised his nose into the air when he started sniffing a new scent.

"What is it, Stinky?" Humphrey questioned, but the second he asked, Stinky's eyes shot open with shock.

"It's Fleet."

But just before anyone had a second to think, one of the omegas suddenly rushed in, and he looked horrified.

"Humphrey, it's Fleet! He's returned, injured!"

"Oh, no! Fleet!" Claudette screamed in terror, and wasted no time in running out to the rock ledge and frantically searched around through the harsh rain for her love. When she was joined by the others, she gasped with she saw Fleet limping slowly towards the den, as his front left leg looked crippled and was bleeding badly, and many of the other wolves were surrounding him; sprinting down to her love, Claudette was terrified to know if Fleet would make it, but by the time she and the others got down there, Fleet had finally collapsed in exhaustion.

"Fleet! What happened?! Are you ok?!" Claudette asked in a panic, as she, her father and brothers all crowded around him.

"Cougars…attacked…the rest…" was all Fleet could mutter before his eyes rolled back into his head and he passed out.

"Quick, someone get him into the den!" Stinky demanded, and a beta soon came in to gently scoop Fleet up onto her back, and she walked up to the den with the help of two more betas to keep Fleet balanced on her back.

Claudette and the rest of her family soon followed the betas carrying Fleet into the den, and they carefully laid him down at the back, where it would be the warmest spot from the cold wind outside, but Claudette only continued to panic inside, as she started to whine a little and lie down by her unconscious lover's sighed.

"Will he be ok?" Humphrey asked one of the betas.

"We're not so sure; all we can tell is that the bite was fatal enough to shatter his leg bone, and he's lost a lot of blood. But if he ever does wakes up, we'll need to make sure we keep him well hydrated," a female beta explained sadly, and though Claudette never looked away from Fleet's half-dead expression face, she heard every word from the beta too, and that's when tears started to leak from her eyes.

Not wanting to impose on family matters, the other betas soon left the den, and Claudette's father and brothers felt pretty worried for Fleet and even worse for Claudette.

"She said 'if', Dad…'IF' he ever wakes up," Claudette sniffled.

"Don't worry, Sis; Fleet must be REAL strong if he was able to walk all the way back-OW!" Runt tried to reassure, but Humphrey put an end to his inconsiderate statement by harshly bumping his shoulder.

"What Runt is TRYING to say is…Fleet would never give up, especially not when he has someone like you to live for; he'll be ok, Claudette. He WILL wake up, I promise," Humphrey explained softly, and that cheered Claudette up enough to slightly look at her father and brothers…but it wasn't enough to make her smile.

A gentle roll of thunder echoed outside, as the storm had finally died down, but the gentle sound of remaining raindrops on the leaves of the trees only made Claudette want to shed more tears.

"C'mon, guys, let's give your sister some space," Humphrey demanded quietly, and Stinky and Runt completely understood, so they both followed their father outside to leave Claudette and Fleet alone.

But as the silence was prolonged, Claudette's eyes began to burn from her salty tears, and there was also a burning lump in her throat that she had repeatedly tried to swallow, but her worry for Fleet just never made it possible. So, with no other options, Claudette leaned forward and gently started to caress her tongue over Fleet's wound; she tried her best to be gently, but she wanted to clean all the blood away.

Meanwhile, Humphrey, Stinky and Runt were all sulking their heads with guilt since there was nothing they could do for Claudette and Fleet…but they were also pretty scared and confused.

"Fleet's leg looked HORRIBLE. What do you think happened?" Runt soon asked.

"I smelled cougar on Fleet, and he even kept muttering something about being attacked by cougars," Stinky pondered out loud.

"I think the better question is—where are the others?" Humphrey asked slowly, and Stinky and Runt's suddenly went wide with realization.

…

"Do you…do you think they…?" Stinky tried to ask, but didn't dare want to speak the possible outcome of what happened to the other alphas…especially not his own mother.

"They're gone," a soft voice piped up, and the boys looked to see it was a depressed Lilly walking up to them, "a search party was sent out shortly after the first sight of Fleet's return…but after a while…they never found the other alphas…"

"So…you're saying that Kate's…" Humphrey started matter-of-factly, but Lilly answered his lingering question with a slow nod while starting to cry.

"No…Kate, no…" Humphrey whined while joining Lilly in her sobbing over the death of their mates, and this also sank into Stinky and Runt, knowing they would never see their mother or uncle ever again.

And just like the first time he thought he lost Kate, Humphrey lifted his head up and puckered his lips to howl a sad song into the air, and Lilly soon joined him, along with Stinky and Runt; it wasn't long before the rest of the pack started to howl to add to the requiem for the lost alphas, and as their sad song flowed into the den, where Claudette cried over Fleet, she soon started to howl too, but not just for the loss of her mother, but also to say her prayers for the survival of her love.

* * *

 **I warned you, didn't I? Things are probably going to get pretty depressing in later chapters, so buckle down!**

 **Until the next chapter, I'm TRikiD, bye-bye!**


End file.
